originally posted on 10/13/2025
Image: Courtesy Dollywood. View full-sized image.
Image: Courtesy Dollywood. View full-sized image.
On September 17, Dollywood (Pigeon Forge, Tennessee) wowed media and the enthusiast community with its official announcement of NightFlight Expedition, an industry-changing attraction under construction for 2026 in the Wildwood Grove section of the park.
Built by Mack Rides, the ride system is elaborate. Riders will experience a five-plus-minute journey that will feature multiple ride types. Guests will float on a boat ride, fly through media content, churn through whitewater rapids and drop on some coaster-like elements.
So, what is it exactly? Well, that’s hard to describe. Mack Rides recently won a Golden Ticket Award for Best Innovation. The German firm introduced its Rocking Boat, a long-in-development ride type that introduces a new option for water rides. The ride system moves boats along a track, generally underwater, but because the boat can rise and fall with the depth of the water while still connected, the boat vehicle can interact with the action of the current. At times, it can be completely out of the water — thus, the coaster elements.
Dollywood started with a story and approached various manufacturers to propose a ride concept that told that specific story. Each vendor got to interpret it as they saw fit — which has to be both challenging and fun creatively as a ride supplier — and decide upon a ride system that fulfilled the park’s request. It is worth noting that this is rare. Typically, a park wants a ride, and then it decides upon a story overlay. Not in this case.
According to Park President Eugene Naughton, management began on this project mere weeks after Big Bear Mountain opened in 2023. The story was the main thing. In the decision process, some of the Dollywood team flew to Germany to experience the Rocking Boat concept. Everything fell into place.
Parts have already begun to appear in the Wildwood Grove section of Dollywood.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.
Of note, the first installation of this concept opened in 2025 at Futuroscope (Chassenneuil-du-Poitou, France). It turned heads within the industry and has the potential to be a big seller for Mack Rides. Who knows? A decade from now, the Rocking Boat installations may be prevalent across the theme park landscape. But there is one place it is not seen: Roller Coaster DataBase (RCDB). Apparently, the coaster portion didn’t warrant a place on the lists for either Futuroscope or Dollywood.
And not that ACE would be in disagreement. The coaster section(s) are only brief moments on the ride. For Futuroscope, it is more of a water ride. At Dollywood, the park has mentioned “reinventing the dark ride experience.” Sure, there are water rides and dark rides with drops in them, but for all intents and purposes, NightFlight Expedition is aiming to be something different entirely — and that’s a cool thing! It’s a lot of everything but nothing that’s been seen before.
In the story of the search for Secret Lake, original characters created by Dollywood are taking guests on an adventure aboard a “bioluminator,” a vehicle that seeks out bioluminescent life within the Smoky Mountains. What makes this attraction different from its predecessor is the flying sequence. Many had speculated that the addition would be a flying theater (a la Soarin’), but guests will remain in their 10-person vehicle while flying through the media content and encounter the coaster dips and drops, as well as the roaring rapids. It should be spectacular.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.
Passengers aboard the park’s beloved train have noticed the huge building that will house the attraction. More than 44,000 square feet in size, it will feature different levels and is designed to accommodate 1,200 riders an hour. The building will be themed to a hangar: Hidden Hollow Aviation.
Photo: Tim Baldwin. View full-sized image.
Enthusiasts know there will always be “that guy” who counts “EV-erything” as a coaster. NightFlight Expedition has targeted something beyond that. It’s original, a huge investment for the park and sure to still be full of surprises. The announcement has generated a lot of buzz, and ACEers will be lining up next spring to see the finished product.
— Tim Baldwin, ACE News
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